Friday, June 23, 2017

Israeli Woman Who Sued El Al for Sexism Wins (LOSES) Landmark Ruling!

Renee Rabinowitz was asked to
switch seats on an El Al flight from Newark to Tel Aviv in 2015 because
a strictly Orthodox male passenger did not want to sit next to her.

JERUSALEM
— Israeli airline employees cannot ask women to change seats to spare a
man from having to sit next to them, a Jerusalem court ruled on
Wednesday, handing down a groundbreaking decision in a case brought by a
woman in her 80s.

Strictly
religious Jewish men who refuse to sit next to women, for fear of even
inadvertent contact that could be considered immodest, are a growing phenomenon
that has caused disruptions and flight delays around the world and
prompted protests and social media campaigns. The pressure to switch
seats can be particularly acute on El Al, Israel’s
national airline. And the issue has become emblematic of a broader
battle in Israel over religion and gender in public spaces.

The plaintiff in the lawsuit,
Renee Rabinowitz, now 83, boarded El Al Flight 028, bound for Tel Aviv
from Newark in December 2015. She had settled into her aisle seat in the
business-class section when the passenger with the window seat showed
up: an Orthodox man who complained about sitting next to a woman. A
flight attendant asked her to change seats to accommodate him, and she
gave in reluctantly.

Ms. Rabinowitz, who escaped the Nazis in Europe as a child, said on Wednesday that she was “exhilarated” by the verdict.

After
the hearing, she said: “I was sitting in a bible class, which wasn’t so
great for the teacher because my phone kept ringing. Anyway, I’m
thrilled because the judge understood the issue. She realized it is not a
question of money; they awarded a very small sum. She realized it’s a
matter of El Al changing its policy, which they have been ordered to
do.”

Ms.
Rabinowitz was represented in court by the Israel Religious Action
Center, the public and legal advocacy arm of the Reform Movement in
Israel, a liberal stream of Judaism. The center has also fought Israeli
bus companies and the Ministry of Transport and Road Safety over gender
segregation on buses serving ultra-Orthodox neighborhoods.

“This
is a common story; it happens to many,” Anat Hoffman, the director of
the group, said of the pressure on women to change seats. Ms. Hoffman
called the verdict “a breath of fresh air” and compared Ms. Rabinowitz
to the Israeli actress who starred in the movie “Wonder Woman.” “Like
Gal Gadot, Renee has superpowers,” she said.

El
Al’s lawyers argued in court that passengers often ask flight
attendants to reseat them to be closer to a relative, or farther from a
crying baby, or for many other reasons. The airline’s policy, the
lawyers said, was to accommodate such requests whenever possible, “in a
way that does not inconvenience other passengers” or cause delays.

El
Al denied that it discriminated against women, saying its reseating
policies applied equally to men.

And the airline argued that the
principle of taking religious sensibilities into consideration has been
defended and recognized in Israeli courts. But the court found that
asking people to move because of their gender violated Israel’s
anti-discrimination codes.

In
discussions outside the courtroom, the two sides in the case agreed on a
judgment proposed by the judge, declaring that it is forbidden for a
crew member to ask a passenger to change seats at the request of another
passenger based on gender. El Al agreed to tell its cabin staff in
writing about the prohibition within 45 days, and to provide training in
how to deal with such situations within six months.

Ms. Rabinowitz was awarded 6,500 shekels, or about $1,800, in compensation. Her lawyer originally asked for 50,000 shekels.

Ms.
Rabinowitz, who lives in an assisted-living facility in Jerusalem, said
that she was thinking of flying to the United States next winter but
that she had not yet decided which airline to use. “I would have no
problem flying with El Al,” she said. “But it depends on who has the
best deal.”

Tendler-Like Teacher Says He Only Pursued Students After School!

World's Greatest Criminal Mugshots!

If Your Child Gets Raped - Go First To Your Rabbi - די באַסטערדז!

For My Israeli Readers! צפייה ביקורתית של יהדות אורתודוקסית

CLICK!

Mazel Tov - Rabbi Hershel Schachter!

CLICK ABOVE PHOTO! Rabbi Moshe Feinstein states the very marriage of a gentile woman to a non observant Jew, is equivalent to an open declaration that she will not observe the precepts. This is so, because it is highly unlikely that the gentile member of such a union, will be more committed to Judaism than her remiss Jewish husband (certainly when they are living together prior to their marriage). Unlike mental or tacit negations, explains Rav Feinstein, open declarations do invalidate conversions. When such cases appear before a rabbinical court, its members actually become witnesses to an acceptance declaration that is not sincere. Therefore, it is no longer a tacit insincerity, but rather an obvious one. As such, they are forbidden to sanction the conversion. Regardless of what this Jewish court may declare, the conversion is invalid and the person is not deemed a member of the Jewish nation. In Iggros Moshe, Letters of Moshe (Yoreh De’ah, no. 157), he writes that “According to the Law, it is certain that one who converts for the sake of marriage, does not intend to keep the commandments, and is not a proselyte at all.”

The Tendler Disease in the News - Again!

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Child Molestor is Castrated in Plea Deal!

CLICK ON CUT 'EM OFF TENDLER!

We Are In A Time When The Sheep May No Longer Trust The Shepherds!

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Tendler Country - Ex - High School Principal Gets 8 Years For Molesting Students!

New Square Appoints Vaad To Deal With Sexual Abuse!

Lakewood Kollel Opens In Senegal!

Scandals Tests Trust in Leadership!

Rabbi Matt Salomon Offers The Pope His Help!

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Oy! Does He Have A Headache!

CLICK ON YOSEL!

Child Abuse - Chipping Away At The Wall Of Silence!

CLICK ON BRIDGE - FOR SALE AT THE AGUDATH ISRAEL!

Rav Yosef Blau Shlita

***CLICK ON PHOTO!*** "Batei Din in our times are not effective in dealing with criminal behavior. Lacking the investigative arm of the police and having restrictive standards of testimony they can not establish guilt. When the culprit is charismatic, he can often get protégés who feel indebted to him to lie to the Beis Din. It takes years before those who have been abused as youngsters to openly face their abuser."

Kolko's Office Sign - Auctioned On eBay!

I'm a bit concerned about Ehud - he can't seem to keep his hands off of me!

Ehud asked me to pardon him!

Looks like George has been hangin' with Bill Clinton!

I look into your eyes --- and I see a rotten crook!

Did you hear the one about the rabbi & the priest? Rabbi Kolko penetrated the priest (oh father)...